Instant Pot Montana Cowgirl Surprise—a hearty meal of beef stew meat, creamy sauce, vegetables and biscuit dumplings.
Instant Pot Montana Cowgirl Surprise
I grew up in Montana and although I haven’t lived there for over 20 years I still have a very special place in my heart for big sky country. It is vast with a lot of room to roam. I like driving in Montana on the freeways because there is hardly another car in sight. I love the big blue skies, the mountains and wheat fields. Summer in Montana is a magical place. The winter on the other hand, not so much 🤣.
One of Montana’s biggest economic producers is ranching. Cattle ranching has been central to Montana’s history and economy since Johnny Grant began wintering cattle in the Deer Lodge Valley in the 1850s and traded cattle fattened in fertile Montana valleys with emigrants on the Oregon Trail. So for a recipe entitled Montana Cowgirl Surprise it just has to have beef in it, right?!
This recipe is a creamy beef and dumplings stew. It’s an easy recipe because it’s a dump and go recipe. No browning or sautéing steps are necessary. And what makes it even easier is the fact that you use refrigerated biscuit dough for the dumplings.
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Instant Pot Montana Cowgirl Surprise
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes (plus NPR)
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
Description
A hearty meal of beef stew meat, creamy sauce, vegetables and biscuit dumplings.
Ingredients
- 1 pound beef stew meat (or chuck roast cut into 1 inch cubes)
- 3 cups water
- 1 Tbsp better than bouillon beef base
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 Tbsp dried onion flakes
- 1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 (12 oz) package frozen mixed veggies
- 1 (12 to 16 oz) package refrigerated biscuits
- 1 (12 oz) can evaporated milk or 1 1/2 cups half and half
Instructions
- Add stew meat, water, bouillon, onion powder, garlic powder, pepper, salt, paprika, onion flakes and Worcestershire into Instant Pot.
- Cover Instant Pot and secure the lid. Make sure valve is set to sealing. Set the manual/pressure cook button to 17 minutes. When time is up move valve to venting. Remove the lid.
- Dump the frozen veggies on top and then cut each of the biscuits into 4 pieces with kitchen shears. Drop the biscuits on top of the veggies. Cover Instant Pot and set valve to sealing. Set manual/pressure cook button to 3 minutes. When time is up let the pressure release naturally for 10-15 minutes and then move valve to venting.
- Turn Instant Pot to sauté. Stir in the evaporated milk. The biscuit pieces will cause the sauce to thicken in just 3-4 minutes. Turn off Instant Pot.
- Ladle into bowls and enjoy!
Notes
I used my 6 quart Instant Pot Duo 60 7 in 1*.
- Category: Beef
- Method: Instant Pot
*Karen Petersen is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.
How would you modify for frozen stew meat? Would you keep the cook time the same for 2 lbs of meat?
I would keep the same cooking time as long as they are individual pieces of stew meat and not frozen all together in one lump
Can you do real dumplings the same way?
Yes I think it would be great!
How would you modify for a slow cooker?
1. Add stew meat, water, bouillon, onion powder, garlic powder, pepper, salt, paprika, onion flakes and Worcestershire into slow cooker.
2. Cover and cook on low for 4-6 hours or until beef is tender.
3. Stir in the frozen veggies and then cut each of the biscuits into 4 pieces with kitchen shears.
4. Sir in the evaporated milk. Cover and cook on high for 60 minutes. Ladle into bowls and enjoy!